Device for automatically changing the loom cops

ABSTRACT

A device for automatically changing cops in a loom and particularly in a ribbon loom having one or more shuttles and a slay positively driven by a loom main shaft. Said device comprises at least a presser by which a stored full cop is driven to a shuttle seat, wherefrom an empty cop is ejected, said presser being directly and positively driven by a slide link secured to the slay. The operation of said device is pre-set in a preceding shuttle stroke by means of an electric circuit that is closed through the shuttle carrying said empty cop to be replaced, when its weft yarn is substantially woven-off.

United States Patent 15] 3,683,972 Colombo [4 Aug. 15, 1972 [54] DEVICE FOR AUTOMATICALLY FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS CHANGING THE LOOM COPS 280,614 12/1930 Italy ..139/243 [72] Inventor: Arturo Colombo, Milan, Italy 482,348 6/1953 Italy ..l39/242 73 Assignee: Sitam Societa Industriale Telai Augiggg grgff "139/243 M11, My 706,063 5/1966 Italy ..139/242 [22] Filed: April 16, 1970 Primary Examiner-James Kee Chi [21] Appl' 29,100 Atl0rney--Wenderoth, Lind & Ponack 52 us. (:1 ...139/243, 139/136 [571 v ABSTRACT [51] llll. Cl. ..D03d 45/20 A device for automatically changing cops in a loom Fleld of Search 1 and particularly in a ribbon loom having one or more shuttles and a slay positively driven by a loom main [56] References Cited shaft. Said device comprises at least a presser by which a stored full cop is driven to a shuttle seat, UNITED STATES PATENTS wherefrom an empty cop is ejected, said presser being 2,579,491 12/1951 Griefen el al 139 243 directly and Wsitively drive by a Slide secured 2 Moste X the Slay. The Operation of device is pl'e-Set in a 295l5l0 9/1960 Redaem 139/243 preceding shuttle stroke by means of an electric cir- Zwick I2 42 cuit that is closed through the shuttle carrying said 1 32l31 5 11/1919 K fi "139/242 empty cop to be replaced,'wher1 its weft yarn is sub- 1,751,224 3/1930 Asaofi' ..139/242 wovgn'off' 2,477,996 8/1949 9 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures Mascarenhas 1 39/242 Patented Aug. 15, 1972 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 L )f 1 E w i 1 ARTURO COLOMBO,

IXVEYTOR. LLJAAbZ ZLZL/J- Attorneys Patented Aug. 15, 1972 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Arturo Golombo,

IXVEXTOR. a/JM M QKLZ u mu )XLlorneyH Patented Aug. 15, 1972 s Shets-Sheet ARTURO COLOMBO INVENTOR. @2416 4M A t tor me s DEVICE FOR AUTOMATHCALLY CHANGllNG THE LUQM CUPS BACKGROUND This invention concerns a novel and improved device designed to change woven-off cops in conventional looms of the type comprising at least one shuttle by which a weft yarn is alternately carried on either sides of warp, a normal beating-up motion of a slay being performed after each shuttle passage. The invention relates also to a novel and improved loom, particularly designed to operate with an automatic cop changer of the abovestated type.

More particularly, this invention concerns an auto matic cop changer of the abovestated type, especially designed to operate on fast running looms, and above all on looms whereon narrow fabrics, e.g. ribbons or the like, are woven and which speed is of an order of 400 or more slay blows per minute.

Said fast running looms, when comprising already known automatic cop changers having a presser driven by the slay and kept under the action of a return spring, to urge at a given moment a full cop from a store into a seat within the shuttle, show many drawbacks which makes practically impossible to utilize said changers in looms operating beyond a given number of blows per minute.

in fact, said already known devices operate wholly within the time during which the shuttle lies at one end of its path and consequently said presser may be yet engaged with the shuttle when this latter starts its stroke in the opposite direction, said danger being obviously the more probable the faster is the loom.

Moreover, in said ribbon looms, wherein the yarn is unwound from a cop that is caused to rotate about its axis or wherein the yarn is usually unwound from a stationary cop and is caused to pass through a braking device, further problems are involved due to the fact that said yarn, before attaining the warp, is led into a shuttle seat wherein a yarn tension spring stresses the same in order to suitably compensate the yarn stretch changes that occur during the loom operation. Thus, when a cop is changed it is obviously necessary to bring the related yarn into said shuttle seat and engage the same with said yarn tension spring. This latter problem has not been yet solved and an efficient automatic cop changer adapted to perform said operation without necessity of slowing or stopping the loom operation is not yet provided in said field of ribbon looms.

SUMMARY An object of this invention is to provide a device for automatically changing woven off cops in looms, by which the abovestated and further drawbacks as shown by already known similar devices are positively avoided, said device being particularly adapted for fast 2 changing woven-off cops, reliably operating even at very high loom speeds.

Another object of this invention is to provide a ribbon loom or the like comprising at least two weaving sections with at least two shuttles, wherein a single automatic cop changer can simultaneously operate on both shuttles of each pair of shuttles.

According to the above and further objects which will become apparent during the following description, the automatic cop changer according to the invention, of the type comprising a presser by which a full cop is taken out from a store and forced into a shuttle seat, wherefrom an empty cop is at the same time ejected, is essentially characterized in that said presser is directly and positively driven in either directions, i.e. toward and into the shuttle and out therefrom to its rest position, by a slay beating motion. Said presser motions are preferably controlled by a. slide link or the like secured to the slay, wherein at least one cam-follower or the like is engaged during a whole slay beating motion, said cam-follower being fastened to said presser in order to selectively impart said to-and-fro motions thereto, according to an engagement or disengagement controlled motion of said cam-follower in respect of said slide link.

Said presser positive .control advantageously allows to carry-out any changing of cops at any loom speed, since said presser motions are performed in each case during the time wherein the shuttle is substantially standstill in its stroke reversing point and the slay is performing its beating-up motion.

According to a further advantageous feature of the invention, particularly suitable for ribbon looms or the like, in order to minimize idle times during the cop changing motion and to allow a proper engagement of the new cop yarn with a related tension spring, a presetting of at least a part of said device to said cop changing operation is provided in a step preceding the same operation and preferably starting when the concerned shuttle reaches the warp side opposite to that wherein said cop changing operation is to be carried out. Said device pre-setting advantageously comprises firstly to. bring said cam-follower in a position wherefrom it can be instantaneously engaged by said slay slide link, when the slay successively attains a preestablished position; and then to bring retaining means in a position wherein they interfere with the path of a projection or the like secured to said yarn tension spring and following the shuttle motion in order to dis engage said tension spring from the empty cop yarn and to allow the new cop yarn to be inserted into a shuttle seat wherefrom said tension spring has been removed.

As stated before, this invention concerns also a loom and in particular a ribbon loom comprising at least one automatic cop changer of the type described and means for directly driving, preferably through gear trains, a reciprocating motion of shuttle or shuttles along a straight path that is stationary in respect of slay motions. When two or more shuttles are utilized, a sin gle automatic cop changer is advantageously utilized for each pair of shuttles, which performs a cop change in a common shuttle position, as reached by said shut tles of said pair on either right and left sides, respectively, of related warps.

DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of a ribbon loom according to this invention, adapted to simultaneously weave two ribbons, said loom being illustrated in a particular operating position and comprising an automatic cop changer acting on both shuttles.

FIG. la is a diagrammatic side view of the automatic cop changer of FIG. 1 along with other loom parts, in the same operating position.

FIGS. 2 and 2a, 3 and 3a, 4 and 4a are views similar to those of FIGS. 1 and la respectively, showing said loom and the related automatic cop changer in different, successive operating positions during a cop changing cycle.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of drive means for loom shuttles and slay, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings and firstly to FIGS. 1 and la, a loom of the invention comprises, in an already known manner, a pair of shuttles 1 l and 12, each carrying a cop l3 and 14 wherefrom weft yarn is unwound, eg by rolling said cop, said weft yarns 15 and 16 being alternately carried on either sides of related warps 17 and 18 by a reciprocating motion of said shuttles in directions X, along a path which is stationary in respect of slay and is covered by each shuttle under the action of drive means which will be described in more detail later on. When said shuttles l1 and 12 attain the ends of their strokes, i.e. their motion reversal points, a beating-up motion is performed by the slay in order to act upon the wefts by combs l9 and 20. To prevent the weft yarn 15, 16 from being submitted to an undue tension, said yarn unwound from each cop 13, 14 is led to a shuttle seat 21, 22 wherein it is engaged by the end of a suitably calibrated spring 23, 24 acting as yarn tensioning means.

Each cop 13, 14 is retained in each shuttle 11 and 12 by a clip 25-(see FIG. 1a) having one arm urged by a spring 26 against a cop spindle 27 and rotatively retaining the same until the force of said spring 26 is overcome by a suitable thrust exerted on the woven-off cop in order to'eject the same.

In a middle position on said loom 10, as alternately reached by both shuttles 11, 12, a device 28 for automatic changing woven-off cops is provided, said device comprising in an already known manner a store 29, wherein the full cops 30 are urged toward the outlet by a pusher 31 and a spring 32, said cops being arranged in such a manner that the related yarn ends 33 extend through a ring 34 and are retained by a pressure pad 35. For replacing a woven-off cop 13 with a full cop 30, that lies each time at the store outlet end and has a spindle locked by a pin 36 resiliently biased by a spring 37, a hammer-shaped presser 38 is used by which said last cop 30 is driven downwardly and the forces of springs 37 and 26 are successively overcome in order to bring said cop 30 into the assembly 25 and at the same time to eject the woven-off cop 13 therefrom.

Said pusher or hammer 38 is advantageously shaped as a lever and pivotally fitted on a pin 39 and operated by a shaft 40 (see FIG. 1), carrying a cam-follower 41 adapted to engage with a slide link 42 that is secured to and moved with the loom slay. Said shaft 40 with its cam-follower 41 is kept disengaged from said slide link 42 (toward leftside in FIG. 1) by a stop member 43 and is moved toward said slide link by the action of a spring 44 when said stop member 43 disengages a related stop block 45 that is keyed on said shaft 40. Said stop block 45, when moved to the right in FIG. 1 by the action of spring 44, after a disengagement from said stop member 43, is adapted to disengage, in a given point of its stroke, a pawl 46 (See FIG. 1a), retaining in position a lever 47 urged by a spring wire 48. The disengagement, of said pawl 46 causes a limited clockwise rotation (in the direction of arrow Y) of said lever 47 about a related pin 49, under the action of spring 48, in a manner and for a purpose which will be described more detailedly later on.

In order to disengage said stop member 43, a relay 50 is connected therewith and can be energized through contacts 51, 52, fitted on either outer ends of shuttle strokes, such contacts being closed by the same shuttles 11 and 12 when a shuttle inner circuit is closed, said shuttle circuit comprising a brush 53 (see FIG. 1a) adapted to contact a ring 54 (see FIG. 1) fitted inside of cop 13 and normally covered by the yarn wound thereon. When the cop yarn is woven-off, the ring 54 is left bare and the brush 53 is allowed to come into contact therewith, thus closing said shuttle inner circuit and said contacts 51, 52 when the shuttle rests on them at the end of said stroke. Said closing of contacts 51, 52 results in an energization of relay 50 and in a presetting motion of the device 28 for a cop replacement operation in the related shuttle, in a manner and according to a procedure which will be explained more detailedly later on.

Said device 28 is completed by a pair of scissors cutting means 55, 56, located sidewardly in respect of warp yarns 17, 18 and designed to act both on the yarn of woven-off cop, by their arms operated by the hammer 38, and on the yarn of just fitted full cop, on

the basis of a tension which is imparted to said yarn in the V-shaped opening of said cutting arms.

The operation of loom 10 and device 28 will now be described, during the different steps of a woven-off cop replacement operation in a shuttle, e.g. with reference to shuttle 11 and to cop 13, such steps being sequenend of its stroke, through its inner circuit which in turn is closed by contacting the brush 53 and the ring 54. Simultaneously, the slay is perfomiing a beating-up motion along with its comb 19in the direction of arrow K of FIG. 1. Said contacts 51 being closed, the relay 50 becomes excited and consequently it disengages the stop member 43 from the stop block 45, which latter is then moved by the action of spring 44 in the direction of arrow H of FIG. 1 along with the shaft 40 until bringing the cam-follower 41 into contact with an outer edge of the slide link 42. However, said cam-follower 41 does not engage with said slide link groove 42, since such engagement can occur only when the outermost slay position is attained, i.e. only after completion of slay beating-up motion and when the shuttle 1 1 crosses again the warp 17.

In FIGS. 2 and 2a, said operation has been performed and the shuttle 11 is now moved in the direction of arrow Z toward the cop replacing point. In the meantime, as sated above, the cam-follower, rolling along the outer edge of the slide link 42 that is moved along with the slay, has reached the groove thereof and has been engaged therewith, through a further motion in the direction of arrow H of FIG. 2, said engagement being performed when the slay has substantially reached its outermost position. Said further motion of the stop block 45 results in a releasing of pawl 46, which is thus swung from the position of FIG. 1a to the position of FIG. 2a and thereby allows the lever 47 to be swung under the action of spring 48. The end 47' of said lever 47 is then brought in a position wherein it interferes with the path of a projection 57 extending from the end of the yarn tensioning spring 23, for a purpose which willfbe considered with reference to following FIGS. 3 and 3a.

Referring now to said FIGS. 3 and 3a, the shuttle l1 continues its stroke in direction Z and attains the cop changing position in front of device 28. During said latter motion, the projection 57 of spring 23 is engaged by the end .47 of lever 47 and said spring is consequently compressed and disengaged from the weft yarn 15, thus clearing also the yarn seat 21, as provided on the shuttle. During the shuttle travelling toward its stroke reversal point, a further beating-up motion is performed by the slay in direction of arrow K of FIG. 3, with a consequent and congruent motion of slide link 42 thereof. However, contrarily to the preceding beating-up step, the cam-follower 41 is now moved along with the slide link 42 and is lifted to cause thehammer 38 to be swung about its fulcrum 39. The spindle of full cop 30 is thereby forced by the hammer end 58 beyond the pin 36, overcoming the retaining force of spring 37, and thus inserted into the clip 25, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 4a, overcoming the resistance of spring 26 and driving the woven-off cop 13 downwardly out of the shuttle. Simultaneously, the brush 53 is placed against the winding of the replaced full cop 30 and breaks the inner circuit of shuttle 1 1, which is therefore prevented from closing the contacts 51 in their next strokes, until its cop is again woven-off. When the hammer 38 is moved downwardly, the scissors 55 and 56 are also operated in order to cut the end of the woven-off cop weft yarn by the scissors 55.

The reversal motion of cam-follower 41, as caused by the return stroke of the slay and slide link 42 to the outermost position, results in a return of hammer 38 and scissors 55, 56 in their starting positions, wherein they are made inoperative in respect of shuttle l1 and related weft yarn.

Simultaneously, said cam-follower motion results in a mutual engagement of two sloping planes 59, 60 (see FIG. 1) formed on the stop block 45 and on the stop member 43, respectively, whereby to bring the assembly consisting of said stop block 45, shaft 40 and cam-follower 41 back into its rest position, wherein said assembly is retained by the stop member 43 and is always urged by the spring 44. It is to be noted that during the whole return stroke of above stated assembly, the cam-follower 41 is always directly and positively guided by the slide link 42, that acts thereon practically till to the end of slay return stroke by means of its upper edge 61. Said motion of assembly 40, 41, 45 in direction of arrow H (see FIG. 4) also results in a corresponding operation of pawl 46, whereby the lever 47 is brought back in the position of FIG. 1, i.e. out of the path of the projection 57 of spring 23. However, the new weft yarn 15 is already engaged by said spring 23, after having been automatically inserted into the shuttle seat 21 when the full cop 30 is hooked-up, during the shuttle stroke in direction Z (see FIG. 4), such engagement being performed in a. smooth and gradual manner to prevent said yarn 15' from being damaged; The yarn 15' is then cut during the next stroke of shuttle 11 in direction 2, since it is brought into the mouth of scissors 55.

After the full cop 30 is inserted, all cops left in the store 29 are advanced by the presser 32, in order to place a further full cop in the position previously taken by the preceding one, wherein the cop spindle is retained by the pin 36.

Thus the device 28 and in general all loom com ponents are brought back in their starting positions, wherein they are kept inoperative until the contacts 51 or 52 are again closed due to running-out of one cop whereafter the above-described cycle is repeated. When the cop 14 of the other shuttle is to be replaced, the device operation is exactly the same, except that instead of scissors 55 the other scissors means 56 will be operated. All other components of the device are common to both shuttles and operate in the same manner.

For an accurate and reliable operation of the device 28 asshown, in particular when. associated with said ribbon loom 10, it is recommended to provide for direct and controlled drive means of both slay and shuttles, which latter are to be reciprocally moved, according to the invention, across a straight race stationary in respect of the slay. A particularly preferred embodiment of such drive means is shown in FIG. 5. Referring to said figure, the shuttles 11,12 are formed with racks 70, 71 adapted to get engaged with driving pinions 72,73,74,75 revolvingly fitted on a stationary component of loom frame, in such a manner as each rack is always engaged with at least one pinion. For reciprocally moving the shuttles 11, 12 along the stationary straight race indicated by the double arrow Z-Z', said pinions 71 75 are alternately driven in both directions by shafts 76 79 which are in turn driven by further pinions 80 83. Said latter pinions are all engaged with a single rack 84, that is reciprocated in the directions of double arrow V-V' by means of a cam-follower engaged with a guide 86 formed on a driving cylinder 87. Said driving cylinder 87 is in turn driven by a main driving shaft 88, through reduction gears 89, 90. Said cylinder guide groove 86 is shaped in such a manner as to impart to shuttles 1 1, 12 quick motions across the related warps 17, 18 and to retain said shuttles in their stroke reversal points, to allow the stroke of slay 91 along with its combs 19, 20 to be performed. Said slay 91, pivotally fitted on the shaft 92 in such a manner as to be free to swing in the directions of arrows U and U, is driven by an eccentric crank 93, fastened to a flywheel 94 that is in turn keyed on said main driving shaft 88, in such a manner that the slay beating-up motions substantially occur during the standstill of shuttles 11, 12.

While the device of this invention has been described as particularly suitable for ribbon looms, it is however to be pointed out that it may be fitted to any other type of loom and in particular to fast operating looms. Finally, in the field of ribbon looms, the invention is applicable both to a loom fitted with a single shuttle and to a loom operating with more than two shuttles, in this latter case an automatic cop changer being provided for each pair of shuttles.

Therefore it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiment specifically described and illustrated, and that within the scope of the appended claims it may be practised otherwise than as specifically described or illustrated.

I claim:

1. An automatic cop changing device for looms particularly for fast running looms comprising a store for filled cops, a shuttle, a shuttle seat, a loom slay, means for operating said loom slay, presser means for moving a filled cop from said store into said shuttle seat and simultaneously ejecting a depleted cop from said seat, means for directly reciprocating said presser means positively toward said shuttle and back to its rest position by the beating-up motion of said loom slay, at least one slide link secured to said slay for controlling said means for reciprocating said presser means, at least one cam-follower to engage said slide link during a complete beating-up slay stroke and means connecting said link with said presser means for reciprocating said presser means.

2. A device according to claim 1 wherein driving means are provided for bringing said cam-follower into engagement with said slide link and out of engagement therefrom, respectively at the beginning and at the end of said slay beating-up stroke. f

3. A device according to claim 2 wherein resilient means are provided for engaging the weft yarn unwound from a cop to compensate the stresses to which said yarn is submitted and means to pre-set at least part of said resilient means for cop changing operation preceding said changing operation.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein said means for pre-setting the cop changing operation are operated when the involved shuttle reaches the warp side opposite to that wherein said cop changing operation is to be performed.

5. A device according to claim 3, wherein a projection on said resilient means and retaining means for said projection are provided and pre-setting means comprise drive means to bring said retaining means in an interfering position with a path covered by said projection to disengage said resilient means from the weft yarn and to allow the yarn of a filled cop to be inserted into said shuttle seat, previously cleared by said resilient means.

6. A device according to claim 3, wherein said presetting means comprise drive means to place said cam-follower in a position for engagement with said slide link, spring means cooperating with said drive means to accomplish said engagement in a successive predetermined position of said slay and said slide link.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein said drive means to bring said retaining means into and out of the path of said projection is controlled by the engagement and disengagement, respectively, of said cam-follower with said slide link.

8. A device according to claim 6, wherein said drive means to place said cam-follower in a position for engagement with said slide link comprise an electric retaining means and electric contact means controlling said electric retaining means so that a shuttle carrying a depleted cop will operate said electric contact means on attaining the warp side'opposite to that in which the cop change operation is performed.

9. A device according to claim 8, wherein said electric contact means comprises a shuttle inner circuit, said circuit having a resilient skid to electrically contact a cop metal element left bare when a substantially complete depletion of the cop yarn is performed. 

1. An automatic cop changing device for looms particularly for fast running looms comprising a store for filled cops, a shuttle, a shuttle seat, a loom slay, means for operating said loom slay, presser means for moving a filled cop from said store into said shuttle seat and simultaneously ejecting a depleted cop from said seat, means for directly reciprocating said presser means positively toward said shuttle and back to its rest position by the beating-up motion of said loom slay, at least one slide link secured to said slay for controlling said means for reciprocating said presser means, at least one cam-follower to engage said slide link during a complete beating-up slay stroke and means connecting said link with said presser means for reciprocating said presser means.
 2. A device according to claim 1 wherein driving means are provided for bringing said cam-follower into engagement with said slide link and out of engagement therefrom, respectively at the beginning and at the end of said slay beating-up stroke.
 3. A device according to claim 2 wherein resilient means are provided for engaging the weft yarn unwound from a cop to compensate the stresses to which said yarn is submitted and means to pre-set at least part of said resilient means for cop changing operation preceding said changing operation.
 4. A device according to claim 3, wherein said means for pre-setting the cop changing operation are operated when the involved shuttle reaches the warp side opposite to that wherein said cop changing operation is to be performed.
 5. A device according to claim 3, wherein a projection on said resilient means and retaining means for said projection are provided and pre-setting means comprise drive means to bring saiD retaining means in an interfering position with a path covered by said projection to disengage said resilient means from the weft yarn and to allow the yarn of a filled cop to be inserted into said shuttle seat, previously cleared by said resilient means.
 6. A device according to claim 3, wherein said presetting means comprise drive means to place said cam-follower in a position for engagement with said slide link, spring means cooperating with said drive means to accomplish said engagement in a successive predetermined position of said slay and said slide link.
 7. A device according to claim 6, wherein said drive means to bring said retaining means into and out of the path of said projection is controlled by the engagement and disengagement, respectively, of said cam-follower with said slide link.
 8. A device according to claim 6, wherein said drive means to place said cam-follower in a position for engagement with said slide link comprise an electric retaining means and electric contact means controlling said electric retaining means so that a shuttle carrying a depleted cop will operate said electric contact means on attaining the warp side opposite to that in which the cop change operation is performed.
 9. A device according to claim 8, wherein said electric contact means comprises a shuttle inner circuit, said circuit having a resilient skid to electrically contact a cop metal element left bare when a substantially complete depletion of the cop yarn is performed. 